Snakes and Ladders, Part 8

SNAKES & LADDERS
by BlackBladder

PART EIGHT

The Porsche drove up outside the Dolton's Household later that night.  The
occupants smiled at each other as Dale turned it's engine off.

"So that's us set?"  Dale inquired.

"Yep - Gabrielle will have to get off my back if she wants to save her job
and her father's respect.  What she doesn't know is that Benjamin will find
out anyway in the long-term."  Anita explained as their plan seemed to be
on-track.

Anita exited the vehicle as Dale followed her up towards the house.  They
fondled each other on the driveway, occasionally embracing each other.  Anita
had informed Dale earlier that night Gabrielle had gone out drinking her
sorrows.

As they entered the kitchen, they hugged and began fondling each other more.
The success of their masterplan to rule Ikair fuelled their sexual lust for
each other as they began to undress each other.  Tonight would be the night
they would make love, Anita decided.

Anita was soon kissing Dale's chest as she worked her way down towards his
waist, removing his trousers and unveiling his penis.  She was lost in
passion as she sucked on it's head as Dale stroked her hair.

"A-.n-i-t-a"  Dale panted as Anita continued to suck.

"What?" Anita replied, wiping the semen from her lips.

"Did you hear that noise?" Dale said, referring to a flash at the back door.

The couple stepped outside, Dale redressing himself as they combated the cold
night air.  

"I'm positive I saw a light through the window."  Dale assured.

"It was just the light from the cars passing by." Anita said, pointing
towards the busy street.

Anita dragged Dale back into the house - they had unfinished business to
attend to-

Anita sighed as she awoke to an empty space in her bed that morning - what
did last night really mean? She pondered while dressing.

From the clean house, it appeared as though Gabrielle had never returned home
the previous night.  

Great, Anita thought.

As she set off in her car, she switched on her mobile phone to view any
messages from last night.  Anita was far too preoccupied with new lover,
Dale, to have any interruptions.  As Anita arrived at work, she reminisced at
the previous night's wild sex.

"You have one voicemail message."  

Anita raised the phone to her ear to receive the message left.  Her facial
expression soon changed dramatically as the news was of Benjamin dying in
hospital overnight due to a relapse.  

Anita was in shock at the tragic news of her husband.  She sat in the car in
silence, mulling over the death of her husband.  Although the aim had been to
seduce Benjamin into taking over his business, she had never expected him to
die.  So a moment of sadness hung over Anita as she locked the car and walked
to her office.

As Benjamin is dead, I get the business anyway--..I saw his will, Anita
thought, as she signed in at reception.

Anita did not want to arouse suspicion at work - she figured everyone would
know of Benjamin's death, and knew she had to act devastated once more.
Anita instantly switched from happy to sombre as she walked to her office.

She walked into her office, shutting the door immediately whilst dumping her
briefcase on her desk.  It was only then that she saw a figure sit
confidently in her chair, holding a file of her own.  The light seeping
through the blinds were not sufficient enough to tell of the uninvited guest.

"Take a seat."  The guest pointed to the Client's chair.

"Who the hell are you?"  Anita said, worried about this unexpected situation.

She saw the figure rise to it's feet and a ray of light shone from an object
into Anita's eyes.  As her eyes squinted to adjust to the light, she felt her
energy sap immediately.  The figure switched on a desklight to reveal it's
true identity - Gabrielle!

Gabrielle locked the door to the office whilst Anita sat dazed in her chair.

"We won't be interrupted."  Gabrielle said confidently as she returned to her
chair.

"You heard the news-..my Dad is dead."  Gabrielle continued as she shifted
into her pockets.

"Yes-.I am devastated."  Anita feigned sadness, hoping this one act would win
over her stepdaughter.

"Sure you are.  He had time to change his will before he died." Gabrielle
said as she extracted a pack of cigarettes.

Gabrielle sensed opposition, so she resumed putting the light of the
Ophthalmoscope into her eyes.  Once again, Anita could feel her resistance
fade slowly as she tried to block the rays of the optic tool.

"You will no longer resist.  You are unable to speak and move.  You will
listen to every word I say."  Gabrielle said slowly.

Anita tried to resist the command, but with the piercing light in her eyes,
she felt compelled to comply.

Once Gabrielle saw Anita's tension subside in her shoulders, she proceeded to
light up her cigarette, taking a deep pull before returning the ray of the
Ophthalmoscope towards the eyes of her prey.

"It is amazing what you can find in the Archive House-" Gabrielle said
referring to the device in her hands.

"I found out a while ago about the unusual effect this quarantined tool has
on people-it opens them up to suggestion.  I tried it initially and
unintentionally on Mandy, who gave me my first cigarette.  After a blast with
this tool, she went from discouraging me to encouraging me to smoke.  I still
was fully unsure of its power until I went back to The Bunker, and tried it
on my old friends-.Let's just say we've made up and they have decided to
accept smoking!  From sharing that first smoke with Ray and co, I then
masterminded my plan to bring you down!"  Gabrielle confessed whilst exhaling
smoke into the office.  

Anita screamed in her mind to escape - to get help of some form.  But this
was unachievable due to the draining power of the faulty Ophthalmoscope. 

"Let me tell you about MY evening.  After you tried to blackmail me, I
decided to play your own game."  Gabrielle revealed Polaroid photographs of
Anita and Dale stripped in the kitchen.  

"Look."  

Anita looked upon this incriminating evidence.

"I went to Dad and showed him that you've been playing away - taking him for
a ride.  Dad was only too happy to rewrite his will there and then - leaving
everything to me.  His death was unexpected and tragic after I left the
hospital.  I will grieve later once I have completed my mission."  Gabrielle
continued as she smoked her cigarette with vigour.

Gabrielle tapped the ash from her cigarette into a makeshift ashtray - one of
Anita's glass awards plates.  She produced a document from her briefcase and
placed it in front of the paralysed victim.

"You wondering about Dale?  You needn't worry - Dale has been conditioned to
help when I start restructuring the organisation---.yeh, and he has a new
smoking habit too - we got him shortly after he left our house early this
morning."

Anita sunk in disillusion - she was unable to move as her nemesis confessed
her plan to oust her from power.  She was commanded to look down upon the
document in front - a new contract.

The contract basically read that Anita would cease control of Ikair and take
up a new position in it's transition - as my Personal Assistant.

Upon instruction, Anita could not fight the urges as she picked up a pen and
signed the dotted line at the bottom of the paper.  Gabrielle exhaled smoke
towards the ceiling as her enemy complied against her will to finalise the
take-over of new management.

"That is fantastic!" Gabrielle stated emphatically, with her cigarette
dangling, as she put the signed contract back in her briefcase.

"Just one last thing, Anita-" Gabrielle stated as her victim sat looking
blankly into space.  Once the Ophthalmoscope had been switched off, its
commands were written into the subject's mind.  The blonde picked up the
makeshift ashtray and placed it in front of the helpless Anita.  Gabrielle
sat on the edge of the table beside Anita, and extracted two cigarettes from
the diminishing pack.  Placing the two cigarettes in her mouth, she lit both
of them up expertly, expelling a cone of smoke as she rest one of them on the
glass plate.  Taking another drag, she switched the Ophthalmoscope back on
and shone the mind-control ray back into Anita's glazed eyes.  

"You will start smoking with me to seal the deal.  You will love the taste of
smoking, and be enthusiastic about every employee lighting up.  Your
anti-smoking stance no longer exists.  You also look up to me as your
superior."  Gabrielle instructed as the light continued to shine into Anita's
eyes - the instructions sinking into the former Manager's mind as Gabrielle
switched off the Ophthalmoscope.

As Anita's mind accepted the new instructions, she instinctively picked up
the cigarette from the plate and deeply inhaled.  Gabrielle sat back in her
new chair as her former nemesis embraced in her impending smoking habit.  As
Anita exhaled expertly a cloud of smoke towards her former stepdaughter, she
smiled.

"What would you like me to do first?"  Anita said dreamily.

"These are my plans-"  Gabrielle said proudly, showing her new smoking
employee a new business plan.

A new dawn beckons for Ikair-

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